Even with the intoxicating aroma of Lady Crest’s blood muddling his thoughts, Peter was a determined and efficient healer. As he applied pressure to her injury to slow the bleeding, he remembered his encounter with the girl’s father years ago. Alexander had had an intriguing scent about him as well, and now he knew it must have been the unique blood that flowed through both of their veins. Swallowing the saliva that built up in his mouth, he leaned away from her slightly in a conscious effort to reign in his inner predator. In her current state, he knew her weakened heart would stop beating if he fed on her now. For the sake of maintaining some semblance of peace with the Order, he couldn’t kill her.

However, as his dark brown eyes traveled over her face, he supposed he could understand why his son had been so infatuated with this human. She was lithe and beautiful, at the peak of her youth. At her age, her physical features could rival most female vampires who maintained their spry appearances forever. But mortal beauty was fleeting. He was sure Vail would thank him later when the spell was broken, and he realized what a huge mistake he would have made if he had chosen Victoria over the far superior Sylvia.

Peter’s thoughts were broken when his sultry patient suddenly whispered to him. His unreadable eyes met hers, but he didn’t speak. It was bewildering that she would try to protect Vail when he was clearly the one who had left her in this pathetic state with his bite, and he marveled what his heir must have done to wrap her so tightly around his finger. Even if the two claimed they were in love, the clan leader knew better. The girl lying beside him was nothing more than a novelty, an amusing toy for one who had grown bored by the mundane repetition of immortal life. His son had been taken by her forbidden charms, but the thrill of having his way with a human would wear off. All he had to do was sever the attachment a bit prematurely.

“It is presumptuous of you to tell me that you can make my son do anything,” he said venomously, indignant at her assumption that Vail could be made docile by a member of the species his kind so easily controlled. “He acted of his own free will and shall face the consequences accordingly. Now, please, do not speak. I don’t have the patience to argue with you at the moment.”

--

Vail walked briskly through the dark halls of his family’s manor, anxious to return to his bedroom before his father could change his mind about helping Victoria. He made quick work of gathering all the supplies the clan leader had requested: a bowl of ice, a coil of sterile bandages and a cup of hot tea. The latter was the most tedious, as it forced him to slow his pace on the way back so he wouldn’t spill the scalding liquid on his hand while he trod up the stairs.

He had almost made it back when he bristled at the sound of his cousin’s voice.

“Vail, what’s going on?” Caleb, another one of his uncle’s children, queried from behind him. The other vampire had his head tilted back and his lips slightly parted as he took in the scents in air. “Is there a human in the house?”

“Yes,” Vail said dryly. “The servants are in their quarters.”

“No, no,” Caleb licked his lips hungrily. “I smell blood.” His eyes landed on the bandages in the younger Hygrace’s arms, and his eyebrows lifted bemusedly. “You know… if you brought a meal back with you, it’s only polite to share, cousin.”

“Mind your business, Caleb,” Vail narrowed his eyes at the other vampire warningly. He opened his mouth to tell him to go back to bed but faltered when he saw two more of his cousins ascend the stairs. It seemed the pervasive scent of Victoria’s blood had attracted more than just his father.

“Where is that [i]delicious[/i] smell coming from?” Caleb’s younger brother, Euler, was practically drooling on himself in his lust to feed.

“I think there’s a woman in cousin Vail’s room,” the eldest, Hosiah, tilted his head.

“He brought back a delicacy that he doesn’t want to share with the rest of us,” Caleb curled his upper lip back, baring his fangs. Even though the four vampires were family, the instinct to hunt and prey clouded their better judgment. It wouldn’t take long for them to fall into a frenzy.

Vail edged away from the other three, his hazel eyes flitting between them warily. In other competitions over humans, he had the advantage of the status and strength that came with the Hygrace name, but against his cousins, they all stood on equal ground. He couldn’t take on all of them either. “Stand down,” he snarled, exposing his elongated canines in the same threatening manner as Caleb. “The human I brought back isn’t prey. She’s here for medical attention, and none of you can touch her.”

“All I’m hearing is that she’s an easy target,” Euler chuckled, blatantly ignoring the heir’s order by taking a step forward.

“You’re not our leader yet, Vail,” Caleb grinned cruelly. “Besides, all we want is a taste… Just one bite each, and we’ll be on our way.”

“Is that so much to ask?” Hosiah joined the others.

The next moment happened in a flash. The three cousins lunged at the one standing in their way, and Vail spun around and raced to his door. Using the ice bowl to cover the full teacup, he slipped into the room and slammed the door behind him, pressing his back against the wood to keep out the frenzied vampires pounding and scratching it from the other side.

“Father,” he casted Peter a pleading look. It would be long before his raging cousins broke through the flimsy barrier, and the clan leader was the only one with the power to control them.

“You shouldn’t have brought her here, Vail,” Peter sighed, rising from where he had been sitting on the edge of the bed. “Move. I’ll handle it.”

With a nod, the Hygrace heir stepped away from the door, and his father exited the room to deal with the frenzy outside, leaving Vail and Victoria alone in the bedroom.